The Iran-backed Houthi group in Yemen has postponed the execution of Indian nurse Nimisha Priya, who was sentenced to death for the 2017 murder of Yemeni citizen Talal Abdu Mehdi, following last-minute diplomatic and religious interventions, according to the Hindustan Times.

The execution was originally scheduled for Wednesday, July 16, but the Indian government managed to delay it temporarily to allow time for negotiating a potential “diya” (blood money) settlement with the victim’s family, as permitted under Islamic law.

Government sources told ANI that the delay came after a series of high-level communications. A key figure in the mediation was India’s Grand Mufti, Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliyar, who reportedly engaged with Yemeni religious figures connected to Sheikh Habib Umar bin Hafiz.

According to PTI, the victim’s family agreed — for the first time — to meet with intermediaries representing Sheikh Habib in Dhamar governorate, marking what observers described as a “major breakthrough.”

The case dates back to 2017, when Priya was convicted of drugging Mehdi to retrieve her confiscated passport. The overdose led to his death, after which she and an accomplice allegedly dismembered the body and disposed of it in a water tank.

India’s Attorney General had earlier stated that the government had “exhausted all possible efforts,” including contacting influential religious figures in Yemen. Though the ruling remains in place, the postponement opens a narrow window for a humanitarian resolution..